In fact, Cao Pi is smarter than Cao Chong

Who is smarter, Cao Chong or Cao Pi? To answer this question, we must first study the death of Cao Chong.

There is a very popular version of Cao Chong's death, that is, he was killed by Cao Pi. Cao Pi was afraid that his father Cao Cao would pass the throne to Cao Chong, so he released a poisonous snake and bit Cao Chong to death. This is also how the new version of "The Romance of the Three Kingdoms" plays out. So how does history record Cao Chong's death?

Historical records record: "In the thirteenth year of Jian'an, Taizu personally prayed for his life when he fell ill in the thirteenth year of Jian'an. When he died, he was very sad." According to historical records, Cao Chong died of illness. So can such records prove that Cao Chong really died of illness? Let’s analyze this sentence in the history books.

In the thirteenth year of Jian'an, the thirteen-year-old Cao Chong became seriously ill. Taizu Cao Cao personally asked a doctor to treat him. When Cao Chong died, Cao Cao was particularly sad. Calling Cao Cao Taizu obviously meant that history was written after Cao Pi became emperor. Then those who write history cannot ignore Cao Pi's authority. Even if he had 10,000 courages, he would not dare to write that "His Majesty, the current emperor, let a poisonous snake bite his clever brother to death." Do you think that's right? Therefore, from this perspective, the historical records about the cause of Cao Chong's death actually do not have much weight.

So who killed Cao Chong? In Sima Yi's words: "It was the young master's own cleverness that killed him. The young master had a kind heart, but he was much smarter than his three brothers, and he was favored far more than his three brothers. Sooner or later, You will die." I think what Sima Yi said is very reasonable. A truly smart person will never show off his intelligence everywhere, because that will bring trouble to himself.

How smart is Cao Chong? Cao Chong was able to figure out how to weigh elephants at the age of 9, which shows that he is far smarter than the average person. There are several examples that prove Cao Chong's cleverness. In the year of the Battle of Chibi, Cao Chong was defeated on the battlefield by Zhou Yu and Zhuge Liang. He finally managed to escape with his life and fled back to Nanjun, but he had to report quickly: "Xiliang Ma Teng and others sent 60,000 troops to attack Cao Cao all the way at night. His hometown Xudu". Cao Cao hinted (remotely) that Xun Yu, who was in charge of Xudu at the time, welcomed his troops back to the court with great fanfare, in order to bluff and give a false impression to the Xiliang army. But in fact, all the officials waited at the city gate for three days, and Cao Cao was nowhere to be seen. Before this, Xun Yu had already made it clear to all the young masters that they did not have to wait in vain like them and suffer at the city gate. However, Cao Pi and Cao Chong still went to the city gate to greet their father every day. The 10-year-old Cao Chong said the same truth as the old Cao Pi: "Only when the prince comes in person can people believe that the prime minister is really coming back." On the fourth day, hundreds of officials and Cao Pi greeted him at the main entrance, but Cao Chong was alone He went to Ximen to greet his father. As expected, Cao Cao returned to the city secretly from Ximen. When Cao Cao asked: "Chong'er, why did you go to the west gate to greet your father?" Cao Chong replied: "For three days in a row, I greeted my father at the main gate with great fanfare when he returned to the court. The people saw it, and the Xiliang assassins could also see it. My father was very resourceful. Naturally, people will not enter the city through the main gate. The west gate is the weakest in Xudu's city defense. If the father enters the city through the west gate, he can check the west gate city defense. The sons and ministers will know that the father will enter the city through the west gate. "

Waiting for several sons. When he ran to the west gate to see Cao Cao, Cao Cao came up with a question to test several of his sons on a whim, and asked: "The assassin must still be in Xudu City. How should you deal with it?"

Cao Zhang said : "Close the city gates tightly, capture the assassins and cut them into pieces." The true nature of a reckless man!

Cao Zhi said: "In addition, we must mobilize the masses and give them bounties so that the assassins have nowhere to hide." A smart guy with a bit of talent!

Cao Pi said: "I agree with the method of the two brothers." The old treacherous and cunning, hiding everything!

Cao Chong said: "My son suggested opening the city gate to let the assassins escape." ? So smart!

Cao Cao asked: "Why is this so?"

Cao Chong replied: "Now that the assassins have failed, killing them will not help. It is better to release them from Xudu to bring a message to the Xiliang army. My father returned to Xudu safely, so that they would not dare to invade."

Cao Chong's answer shocked everyone present. Cao Cao particularly agreed and added: "Remember, anything. Don't be angry at all times. Anger can only lower your IQ. Don't hate your enemies. Hatred is useless. Let your enemies be used by you.

"Look at his level, there is really no one else!

Cao Cong is indeed smart, but this kind of smartness permeates the air without concealment, making people around him feel uncomfortable. Especially in the competition. In the whirlpool of political status, one should not show one's intelligence without modification.

On the other hand, Cao Pi looks very simple and honest, with loyalty, filial piety and righteousness as his primary external image, but his true strength is hidden underneath. This is another kind of wisdom.

Think again, if you are one of the officials, do you want the smart Cao Chong to be your future leader or the honest, loyal and filial one? Even if it is pretending) to be your leader? If Cao Chong is your leader, he can see through any of your actions at a glance. You are like a transparent piece of plastic paper in front of him. I want to ask you if you are afraid of being around such a leader. ? And Cao Pi's image is naturally the most in line with the expectations of the officials, because such a leader is most beneficial to them.

If Cao Chong is smart and public, coupled with his young age and lack of political experience, his death is inevitable! If he can live to be 18 years old, maybe he can be smart and restrained, and he can hide his secrets. This is also a guess. Maybe, who knows? Just like him, he had the best grades in the class and a "free and easy personality". "Uninhibited", another word actually means "flagrant", so not many people in the class like me, and those who do like me probably have very high emotional intelligence and are just pretending. Because today I don't like myself at that time. Cao Chong and Cao Pi Who is smarter? Readers will understand after writing this!

This article advises yourself: being smart and not being arrogant is the right way.